This invention relates in general to braces for human joint support, and in particular to an exteriorly positionable anatomical brace having tensionably tightenable cuffs situated about respective limb structures on either side of a uniting pivoting joint such as a knee joint to thereby provide adjustable tightening pressure on the limb structures and resulting stability to the supported joint.
Both injury and disease can affect the health, well-being, and operability of various joints of the human body. Chief among such joints are the knee and elbow where disease such as osteo-arthritis can curtail normal activity or where an injury such as a sports-related abuse or impact can prevent or severely limit continued activity. One manner of treating such joint conditions is to fit the wearer with an appropriate brace whereby a pivotal support member is positioned adjacent the affected joint and held in place usually by cuff members-situated around limb structure sites above and below the supported joint. As is apparent, the cuff members are responsible for stabilizing the support member and therefore must be well secured to their associated limbs. To accomplish such securement, present cuff members are typically provided with one or more straps that are tightened around each limb structure and retained by buckles, hook-and-loop connections, or the like. Concurrently, the support member adjacent the joint may well be pivotal in solely a single plane and thus limit the normal multi-planar mobility of the joint.
Such present-day construction is generally deficient, however, in that such cuff tightening is limited by strength of the user as well as flexibility and tensionabilitity of the cuff structure itself, while such joint construction prevents normal twistability between the pivoting limbs. In view of these deficiencies, it is apparent that a need is present for an exteriorly positionable anatomical brace wherein the tightness of cuff members can easily be adjusted for effective brace engagement.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an anatomical brace wherein cuff-member structure is adjustably tensionable in contact with adjacent encompassed limb structures to thereby effectively anchor the cuff to the limb.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an anatomical brace wherein the pivotable brace joint member thereof connecting the first and second cuffs and supportingly adjacent the joint itself is constructed to permit limited multi-planar movement between the two cuffs that endeavors to replicate normal joint movement.
These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent throughout the description thereof which now follows.
The present invention is an exteriorly positionable anatomical brace for stabilizing a uniting pivoting joint disposed between a first limb structure and a second limb structure of a living being. The brace includes a first cuff partially encompassable about the first limb structure and a second cuff partially encompassable about the second limb structure. Each cuff is a generally U-shaped tensionable and flexibly bendable wall structure with two lateral cuff arms having respective distal ends arcuately extending toward each other for juxtapositioning with respective adjacent limb structure sites. At least one tensioning elongate member is integral with each lateral cuff arm and has a threaded end extending from the respective distal end of the cuff. A stop member is disposed at each distal end of each cuff arm and accommodates the passage therethrough of the threaded end of the respective at least one tensioning elongate member. A threaded bolt is engaged on the threaded end of the respective at least one tensioning elongate member and is rotatably movable thereon against the stop member for bendably drawing each respective elongate member with the respective integral lateral cuff arm progressively tighter against the respective adjacent limb structure site in direct relationship to the magnitude of rotational movement of the bolt against the stop member. Finally, a pivotable brace joint member connects the first and second cuffs through respective first and second rigid frame members extending from each respective first and second cuff.
Preferable brace joint construction includes a forward arm member having a generally spherical first end and a generally spherical second end, and a rearward arm member in tandem relationship with the forward arm member and likewise having a generally spherical first end and a generally spherical second end. The joint has a first end attached to the first frame member and a second end attached to the second frame member, with each end having two generally spherical sockets positioned such that each spherical socket accommodates one respective spherical end of each respective arm member for limited multiplanar movement between the rigid frame members and therefore between the first and second cuff.
Employment of the anatomical brace here defined provides adjustably tightenable cuff engagement with encompassed limb structure sites by rotating the respective bolt threaded on each elongate member and drawing the cuff to the limb structure site to thereby maximize stability of the brace with the limb. Simultaneously, because of the spherically cooperative configurations of the brace joint and the resulting multiplanar movement potential between the two cuffs of the brace, the supported joint can simultaneously experience a more normal replication of natural movement.